European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 13, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Munich monastery with prayer cells for rent associated Pressw Hen clanging streetcars blaring Iorns hissing Rains and Othot noises of the cily get to be Loo much Lor munchers in arc s always is Boniface s the roman Catholic monastery an Island of Tranquility in downtown Munich rents Oul prayer cells or those in dire need of peace and quiet recently a protestant minister came on what we Call our quist Day which is usually one saturday a month said Abbot Odilo Lechner who Heads the Benedictine monastery he Sard to had a very important Sermon to prepare and needed to do it in a quiet place away irom his family so a came to  is. Boniface which is operated by 12 Benedictine monks is less than a Quarter of a mile irom the sprawling train station in the Center of bustling Munich. It is one of about 20 monasteries in West Germany where Lay people As Well As clerics can go to meditate and rethink their lives. Most however Are in much smaller and More tranquil set Lings than Munich with ils 1.3 million Pec Pla. The is Boniface cells Are rented for minimal rates by the Day or week. Young people pay $6.66 a Day for the cell room and Board adults Are expected to make a voluntary donation Tor a cell and meals. The Price that s no important. It 19 More or less  Lechner said in a recent interview the people who come to St. Boniface he added Are from ail Waits of Fife including teachers Sci enlists. Businessmen and Many youth some stay or Only a Day others for As Long As to iwo weeks. Lechner a Quiel Man in its 60s, said Hal sometimes groups of eight to 10 people come to the monastery to meditate and Pray. Here they live like one lives in a monastery Lechner explained. They get up at 5 10a m. Pray together breakfast together attend mass Ihen meditate or just Chat. Before noon they help do housekeeping chores. Work in the Garden and such. Then they Pray together again Eal lunch then a Little free Lime to take a walk food served at the monastery is typically German eggs cheese Ham fresh bread butter and Jam for breakfast a pork Steak cold cuts or sausages with vegetables and salad for lunch and dinner. There also is a Choice of water soft drinks or even a Glass of Beer Lechner said the rigid schedule and tranquil atmosphere of the monastery have a Way of reducing stress because everyone knows where to be at a Given Lime. It s not like elsewhere in the cily where everything is so hectic Rushing irom one appointment to another he added. Here the times arc we Lor when one i ays and dines. Ii is belter regulated some of the Young people Utu aty Between Tho Ages of 16 and 20, return each year to meditate it is Lor them a meeting with the Church people Are sometimes too removed irom the Church to they come Hare to learn the Church from Ihen Jde " the ground Storie Lor is bondage was Laid oct 12 1b3s, to coincide with celebrations Lor Tho Silver wedding anniversary of King Luong i of Bavaria the monastery compte was heavily damaged by Allied bombs in 1944 and 1945. And in Bill Between 1970 and 1975. Ten of the 1s concite waited looms on he second Itow Are rented out each has Only a col. Chair and table Sofia Tho capital of Bulgaria hat Pronto Sygit irom living poo fit to living  a touch of opulence in spartan Sofia Fly Henr Kamm new York times he old Man sat Down heavily on the croaking Sofia Park Bench he addressed a remark i a stranger already there he Silano for a moment when the other said he did nol speak by Ilanan. The Man offered a greeting in German he had studied Law in Germany 60 years ago he sad but had had Little occasion to use the language since Bulgaria fell to the red army in 19 Lile has been hard he said As it he owed an explanation for not having spoken with foreigners or Lor looking about furtively before engaging in conversation the foreigner mentioned the present atmosphere of  and democratization proclaimed by the communist leadership under president Todor Zoh Rivkov the old Man made a dismissive gesture and said he was not interested1 m politics. Ii won t change he said. It s a Little easier than Al the beginning but in s always the same he continued one gels used to it nothing Eise one can do " to bring the Chal Onla less Baleful ground. The foreigner asked about the Man s family just my wife he said eighty Tike myself no children we wanted to have children later when lungs would be better the Man said then they did t get belter " apparently feeling Ihal the Lime limit Lor a Sale Chat with a foreigner had been reached the old Man Rose and extended his hand goodbye he said clutching his siring bag containing potatoes and other vegetables he walked Oil haltingly he looked Back once but he said nothing More. At least one thing has changed markedly m Sofia the Balkan hotel once the most stalinist state inn West of Moscow has become the Sheraton soda hotel Balkan a luxurious place o lodging and lunching in a capital thai has progressed Over the past 22 years irom living Pouly to living simply except for a Tell of the purest slalom so gothic pan of a downtown Complex of heavy steeped Gingerbread buildings housing parly and government Headquarters. The National Bank a department store a mausoleum of the founder and a massive statue of Lenin everything in the hotel seems Loba new Western and sumptuous. Day october 13,1987 the Job Cost an investment in scarce hard currency of $60 million which the Sheraton is working off Al tha rate of $150 a night Lor a single room nol payable in the local currency. This is More than the guaranteed monthly wage even Lor a specialized worker As one result Only one bulgarian is recorded As having a Cpl there since the refurbished hotel opened a your ago recovering costs is Likely to be a Long process since much of what in Sheraton uses daily irom linens and crockery to Coulee. The milk that goes in it and much of he food is imported for hard currency. In Odra Ilion. The so Regalon organization has a 1 a year management contract and eight Western stall members Tram the general manager Down who arc paid in dollars such opulence has not gone unnoticed in so spartan a City. Ii is fashionable for bulgarian couples to have Coffee and a creamy confection in Tho hotel s viennese cafe spending about one tenth of an average monthly wage in the process to be Able to say As one bulgarian who refused to go there put it. I heard at tha Sheraton the other Day,." others just walk slowly past the Mam Entrance staring. They must hate us a member of he expatriate Stalf said. In the i melted nightlife of Sofia the Havana restaurant is a place that matters. Newly built on Vitosh Boulevard the showcase Street it resembles a 1930 s Hollywood notion of a Sleazy cuban nightclub. The tables ring a circular stage and dance floor that is framed by willing greenery and multicoloured Neon lights. The rest of the lighting is lower than dim but the sound level of the band duffs All senses. The combination of slavic cuisine and a Sombrero floor show puts the Havana in a multinational class of its own mixing gherkins and Quanta camera " a Middle aged but youth fully dressed cuban couple was performing the song the other evening with much prancing and gesturing to invite the Public to join in West German businessmen responded1 with Hearty hand clapping. The woman of the couple wearing a dress of Many flounces devoted her particular attention to a table of Middle aged men in business suits she seemed to be singing Guan Lacamera Only for them Ca Otma them with Many a hashing smile and come hither gesture to sing along. They went As far As they dared tapping on he table in rhythm. Did the cuban Singer know that her targets were officials of the haled Yanqui imperialist Loe the stars and stripes Page 15